@Tyranexx
I always contemplate sticking around or not, losing JaxonH was another big blow. I automatically assumed he was taking another break, and would come back full swing like he always does. If only more Late 30's & 40+ year olds would flock to the forums, basically most of the people that were ongoing members since the the late 2000's up until the early 2010's, just as I was.

Wish the retro forum would get a new lease on life. It's practically a ghost town compared to what it once was. And lets face it, YT feels far more shallow since it pushes for shorter comments, you can't post pictures or links, and you get lost in the shuffle since it's a complete cesspool.

@Tasuki
He told me it was liberating to finally cave and go digital. No more stressing out over pre-orders, waiting for whatever he ordered from LRG to arrive several months later in the mail and onwards. He had his fix, and digital just made more sense to him at that point. Besides, that's where we're heading anyways. PS6 and Steam are all digital. Switch 2 will probably be the last bastian for semi worth while physical media. As long as there's no ugly keycode/multiplat banner flooded with text at the bottom of the front cover.

I know physical media can be part of the expeirence for many, but some people wind up growing too much of an attachment to that stuff to the point where it controls them. I've said this before, but modern physical media is mostly boring clutter. I want beautiful things eating up my space, not Sony's left over table scraps.

And ya, I always say, we can't take any of this stuff with us when our time comes, so why act as if the inevitable all-digital PS6 future is a first world problem? Then again, I'm a total hypocrite that still buys 80s/90s action figures, boardgames, you name it.

@WaveBoy To be honest, I have also contemplated about whether I want to stick around. What usually keeps me coming back Is that I have few places IRL to discuss gaming, so online spaces have always helped me fill that niche. A few of my co-workers game, and we have had some good conversations. But most of them play multiplayer PC games I'm not into, whereas I tend to gravitate more towards single-player immersive experiences. Some of the more wholesome topics and user conversations keep me around too.

I also assumed JaxonH was taking a break When I noticed he hadn't posted in a bit. Frankly, I think we all need them now and then. I'm sad to learn it's permanent. I'll definitely miss his positive energy.

I really wish this site hadn't moved to an upvote/downvote system. Even if the down votes are hidden, I feel these systems only tend to reinforce groupthink. There's a reason I've never made a Reddit account. I think the site staff resisted this system for a while until the request became overwhelmingly popular. We have report options for any posts that flagrantly go against the rules.

Oh my gosh, Jaxon passed??? I was just lurking around the forums and came across this news, omg. That one hurts. I was wondering why he hasn't been around for a while. I'm really going to miss his contributions; he was one of those users who felt like such a big part of the community.

Fwiw as a long-time lurker (as well as being a goober who forgot the log-in info to his first profile) I always enjoy seeing a post by a name I recognize from years ago. Even if we've never had a conversation it still feels like seeing a friendly, familiar face. I wont start naming off a bunch of people, but JaxonH was one and @Tasuki you're another buddy.

I was just wondering the other day about how some of the faces I've been familiar with on these forums haven't been active in a while, and Jaxon was one of those faces. I thought that he was just coming in and out of the forums like he usually does- given the breaks he took in the past. I hope that he was able to pass peacefully and that he's in a good place.

@Rahmus Oh man, thank you so much for posting this...

Have been on the forums in the past but haven't been on recently until now, used to really follow along back during the NX era into Switch 1 and Jaxon was such a friendly and positive face, it was nice to see his posts as a mainstay, but when I didn't see his posts anymore like other people here just thought he had outgrown the forums, very sad to see his passing but hope he did everything he wanted to before he did, life is too short to not just try and live it to the fullest as best you can

@Tyranexx
Even if you have a couple of friends outside of the internet that game, you're not always gauranteed to be playing the same games, and you're obviously going to want to talk about the experience you've had with said game, and that's where forums and YT come into play. can't be alone in the hobbie, video games are meant to be shared after all. Forums & YT definitely help fill the void that's for sure! Heck, if i didn't talk about video games on the internet, I'd practically be alone in my hobbie. At this point, the only person that i know that enjoys them is my niece. Bust she's mostly just into Roblox and has zero interest in the 300+ something games on my NS1, including Super Mario Oydssey & Luigi's Mansion 3 which we got her a few Christmas's ago.

Back during the late 2000's and early 2010's, NL was a godsend. If it weren't for this forum, back then, my Wii + Virtual Console, DS Lite, first two years of the 3DS, which were glorious on my end, while simultaneously delviing back into the 8-16 bit generation with GameBoy, NES, SNES & Genesis wouldn't of been anywhere near as fun or memorable. The forum saved my hobby, because i didn't get what i needed from my friends whome by the way had a Wii & DS Lite, but they were casual gamers and we barely even talked about gaming. It was just one big party. lol Anyways, NL was essential and i have no regrets spending the amount of time i did when this forum was bustling and thriving as much as it was back then. It was amazing, back when i was 24 - 28. I loved the Wii + VC, DS Lite & first two years of 3DS. Pretty much everything all-Nintendo before the Wii U came out.

And it's crazy, JaxonH is gone forever. He won't even be coming back in a thousand years. Even if reincarnation existed, and we came back as another human our previous memories from our prior life would be erased. I have faith that there's something amazing waiting for us after this life, but nobody knows for sure. JaxonH's passing is just another reminder that it's vital and so important to cease every moment of the day and make the best of it doing what you love, surrounding yourself with people that you love/the right tribe of peeps, to have common grounds, to persue whatever it is you're passionate about and not let anybody else dictate what you should or shouldn't be into, beacuse that right there will lead to a life full of regrets. Gotta be true to yourself and embrace everything you love. We're not here forever and we're not even guaranteed tomorrow. But eh, we've heard this all before and we generally take everything for granted. Yup, the NL forum definitely wont feel the same without Jaxon that's for sure.

And yes, i can't stand the upvote/downvote system. YouTube being a prime example. Somebody who's trying to post some clever witty response solely to garner in as many likes as possible, just so they can feel important, almost like they're at a higher rank. Funny thing is, those exact same people that can get, lets say, over a thousand upvotes from a simple comment usually never reply back to the comments that arereplying to their comment. lol They feel like they've social media-ascended and couldn't be bothered. They just want attention and validation and that's the last thing we need on sites like this. It should be about conversations, not embracing some kind of lame a** popularity contenst. Not a fan of YT Content creators hearting comments either. But it tis what it is.

I'm just grateful that the forums are here and gave me the opportunity to enjoy Jaxon's posts and engage with Jaxon.

The period transitioning from the Wii U to the NX/Switch and then the fabulous wave that was the (pre-Switch 2) Switch era was a golden period for me on this site, and that NX/Switch thread will live on in my heart as a legendary time of reveling in the Switch's glorious sunlight. Jaxon was a huge contributor to that thread and I'm very thankful for the opportunity to feed off Jaxon's Switch love and enthusiasm. To be able to exchange the occasional digital high-five with Jaxon over our mutual pleasure at the bounty of games and positive Switch sentiment that abounded was a real privilege for me. This forum and the ongoing community here helped enable that and obviously brought some meaning to Jaxon's and my life, so thanks to everyone, past and present.

@Tyranexx Yeah for the most part I am just using NL as a message site. I am not looking at any of the articles or any forum threads. It sucks that the dont have a PM system in here in tbe past I could agree with their reasoning but with their lack of forum modding their reason doesnt make sense, but I digress.

As for WoW I have been playing Anniversary Classic now for about a month, which is TBC. I am enjoying it alot. I originally started playing during WotLK so this is kinda all new to me. I tried retail back when War Within came out, it was ok but just didnt feel like WoW to me. Classic is just more to my liking and as I said before I am just taking my time with it.